Is Warner Bros. sitting back, laughing at the swarm of “Veronica Mars” fans who are chipping in their hard-earned cash in hopes of launching a movie via Kickstarter? Or are we witnessing the logical evolution of the movie business, in which fans dictate what they want to see and use the internet to generate a movement?

The late, lamented “Veronica Mars” has been off the CW’s air for five years. But creator Rob Thomas (who described his show as “Heathers” meets “Chinatown”) along with cast members Kristen Bell, Jason Dohring, Enrico Colantoni and Ryan Hansen have an idea. They shot a promo asking for contributions totaling $2 million to launch a movie. Depending how much they fork over, contributors get a signed poster, maybe a walk-on, maybe a producer credit. Thomas posted in his Kickstarter explanation, that there was an effort to launch a movie in the past but, “Warner Bros. wasn’t convinced there was enough interest to warrant a major studio-sized movie about Veronica and the project never got off the ground.”

Check out the video. No re-enactments. And no catch-phrasing. And see who has the last laugh. Considering how quickly the amount is climbing, and with 30 days left for fundraising, I’m not betting against Thomas, Bell and company.

UPDATE: It’s officially a go. The $2 million goal was met in less than a day. Those Marshmallows are a serious bunch.

LA–Everyone knows Jack Warner’s reputation as a cheap, difficult, unrefined man who referred to writers as “schmucks with Underwoods.” His step-grandson was here today telling stories about the guy, like the time Jack Warner ended an argument with Warren Beatty by yelling at him, “Whose initials are on the water tower?!”

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WB, the studio mogul, was a character, Gregory Orr, his step-grandson confirmed at a PBS panel for the “American Masters” upcoming documentary, “You Must Remember This: The Warner Bros. Story.” Richard Schickel, Time magazine film critic, celebrates the evolution of the film studio in the five-hour tribute, airing Sept. 23-25.

Actress Joan Leslie,

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who signed with Warner’s in 1939 and played opposite James Cagney in “Yankee Doodle Dandy,” talked about being “groomed” by the studio. Director Richard Donner (“Superman”) blasted modern studios for “micromanaging in the worst way,” and Schickel lauded Warner Bros. as “the studio with an American social consciousness unequalled in Hollywood.”

The NBC, Fox and CBS comedies and dramas I’ve seen so far are not encouraging (still waiting for ABC’s batch). But one stands out as shockingly insensitive.

At this point, the pilots sent to critics are supposedly for “informational purposes only” and not for review, but one of the Fox hours intended for midseason, “The Sarah Connor Chronicles,” definitely needs editing.

On the gigantic and truly beautiful set of “Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip” on the Warner Bros. lot, creator-producer Aaron Sorkin today met with writers in the set’s version of the writers’ room. Sorkin was way too defensive.
Amid the carefully crafted prop mess of newspaper and antacids, Sorkin blasted bloggers’ criticism of his series, offered too much explanation for the disappointing ratings, lashed out at negative stories in the Los Angeles Times in particular (“nonsense”) and complained about the too-high expectations for his work. Besides, the sketches within the show aren’t supposed to be funny, he said. They’re just rehearsals.
The brilliant/stubborn writer didn’t do himself or the series much good. He should have talked up the strong points: the production is a lavish, high-minded one that needs time to develop.
“Studio 60″ returns to the air Monday for seven consecutive episodes. Expect an emphasis on romantic comedy–Matt and Harriet, Danny and Jordan (that’s Matthew Perry and Sarah Paulson; Bradley Whitford and Amanda Peet).[photopress:sts_1002_027.jpg,thumb,pp_image]

Joanne Ostrow has been watching TV since before "reality" required quotation marks. "Hill Street Blues" was life-changing. If Dickens, Twain or Agatha Christie were alive today, they'd be writing for television. And proud of it.